Sport has the capacity to heal rifts around socio-political identity

In a glittering Wimbledon Centre Court on Sunday afternoon two different flags fluttered with pride. The first was the Union Jack representing the United Kingdom of Great Britain. The second was the blue and white Scottish flag, claiming a right over Andy Murray as their very own.

With Murray winning in straight sets, both sets of flags had their moment of glory. Murray, finally, is a real “Britisher”. He has finally been appropriated by the high and mighty of British society as a British success story. Had he lost, however, he would have yet again been labelled a ‘Scot’, who isn’t capable of being a true British champion.

Commentators Vijay Amritraj and Alan Wilkins started their Wimbledon final broadcast with the question, “Can Murray exorcise the demon of the 2012 final?” It was a fair question to start with. However, far more important was the question of identity: Is Andy Murray a Scot or is he finally a ‘British’ sporting superhero? Did he need to win Wimbledon to put all debate to rest and forge a temporary unity between two warring factions — the Scots and the English? Also, does sport have the power of transcending these geopolitical barriers and creating short-lived fairy-tale moments in which deep-seated socio-political anxieties recede to the background?

From the events of last week across world sport, the answer is an overwhelming yes. If it was Andy Murray in Britain it was Parvez Rasool in India. Rasool, by making it to the Indian team, has now been extrapolated from being a mere Kashmiri cricketer to being an Indian sports star who also happens to be a Kashmiri.

While at one level Rasool’s inclusion is a success of the people of Kashmir, at another his appropriation within the mainstream of Indian sport tells a far more interesting story. It is a tale of social mobility through sport, in which a local star is vested with a pan-Indian identity. Just like M S Dhoni is Indian skipper first and a Jharkhand sports icon much later, Rasool too is now more Indian than Kashmiri.

At the same time, Dhoni’s elevation to Indian captaincy was a triumph for the people of Jharkhand. It ushered a revolution of sorts in Indian sport whereby smaller towns discovered a voice, which had been denied to them for over half a century. Whether or not Rasool can do an encore only time will tell but for the moment he has given the people of Kashmir much to rave about.

The other cases in point that come to mind are those of Sourav Ganguly, Mary Kom and Limba Ram. Before Sourav arrived on the scene, Bengalis were considered no match for Mumbaikars and Delhiites in cricket. They were ‘effeminate’ men incapable of playing real sport. Each time a Bengali cricketer came to the fore he was an aberration and was soon treated with disdain by the cricketing mainstream.

With Sourav Ganguly all of this changed. Here was a Bengali who was first an Indian and then a Bengali. The aggression that Sourav personified resulted in his appropriation across the country as a true pan-Indian icon. In fact, it wouldn’t be wrong to suggest that Sourav’s appeal cut across provincial lines because he was considered a very ‘atypical Bengali’ by fans in the rest of the country and across the Indian diaspora.

Similarly, Mary Kom, who is now one of the most loved Indian sports icons, was a Manipuri mother of two before her bronze medal winning feat at the 2012 London Olympics. During London 2012, it was fascinating to watch Indians from across the country passionately support Kom as she went on to achieve the incredible feat of winning India’s first-ever bronze medal in women’s boxing.

Mary has since been elevated to the status of a legend in India and has been accepted into the mainstream of Indian society. The final act in her acceptance is a proposed Bollywood film on her life, which clearly is a huge personal triumph for Kom, but far more importantly, a massive moment of recognition for the people of Manipur.

The final case is that of Limba Ram. Before the 1992 Barcelona Olympics Limba was hailed as India’s single biggest medal hope. He was touted as one of the favourites in men’s archery and was expected to end India’s 38-year-long medal drought. However, Ram crashed out in the very first round and is known to have said to one of the officials that had he been given another opportunity he’d surely win.

That one comment resulted in Ram being labelled a ‘foolish tribal’ who was a misfit in the echelons of world sport. Failure to stand up to the billing of favourite meant he had lost his ‘Indian’ tag and was demoted to being an ‘uncultured tribal’. That Ram has made it back to the top of Indian archery as coach is not only a huge personal achievement but is also a snub to those who had kicked him in the gut following his failure at Barcelona.

The point then is what sport is capable of. Success in sport can, within moments, remedy years of discrimination and neglect and elevate the sportsperson concerned to a position of universal acceptance. Andy Murray is now a true British sporting great.

The writer is senior research fellow, University of Central Lancashire.

DISCLAIMER : Views expressed above are the author's own.

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Boria Majumdar is a leading sport scholar and television commentator. Author of a number of bestselling books on Indian sport, he is an oped columnist for The Times of India and sports expert at Times Now. A Rhodes scholar, Majumdar is adjunct professor, Monash University, and senior research fellow at the University of Central Lancashire.

Boria Majumdar is a leading sport scholar and television commentator. Author of a number of bestselling books on Indian sport, he is an oped columnist for T. . .